The Traveller's Magazine
With so much snow in the UK, it’s no wonder Ryanair has opened up four new half-term ski routes this December. If you don’t head south this time of year for holidays, you may as well embrace the chilly weather and the white powder. Grab one of these low cost flights and start waxing your skis.
Ryanair announced on December 1st that four new routes will open in February, catering to Europe’s popular ski destinations. Now family and friends can depart for a ski weekend for cheap from East Midlands and Edinburgh to Turin, Italy and from Glasgow and Liverpool to beautiful Salzburg starting at £27.99 a seat (before taxes).
Demand for these seats is expected to be high, so search for your cheap flights to Turin and Salzburg early if you don’t want to miss out on the low cost deals. These routes will only run half-term operating on the following dates:
- East Midlands – Turin: 19th/26th Feb
- Edinburgh – Turin: 19th/26th Feb
- Liverpool – Salzburg: 19th/26th Feb
- Prestwick (Glasgow) – Salzburg: 13th/20th/27th Feb
Now that Europe’s ski season has officially started, many travellers are looking for destinations to give their skis and snowboards their first run of the season. Take a look at Where to ski for cheap: Eastern Europe if you’re looking for a destination with underestimated slopes and a lot of culture at little cost.
Thinking of bringing your own skis instead of renting? Here are a few pointers to keep in mind for packing yourself and your skis for a holiday.
How to travel with skis & pack for a ski holiday
- Inquire about your airline’s policy beforehand. Ryanair for example charges extra for sports equipment like skis weighing up to 20 kg. It costs £40 when booked on-line (each way) or £50 when charged at the airport (each way).
- Most airlines allow you to pack one set of skis, boots and one set of poles as one bag. Wrap your skis in bubble wrap first so that your poles don’t damage the skis, then use your ski pants and coast as extra padding (and so that they don’t take up room in your other checked luggage).
- When packing clothing, pack modestly. If you plan to be out on the slopes the majority of the time, don’t pack many extra clothes to wear off the slope and vice versa. Other essentials to remember to bring include: sunglasses, goggles, thick skiing socks, woolly hats and sunscreen.
Do you bring your own skis or rent at the hill? What are your favourite ski destinations?
Img: uwdigicollec / Flickr cc
Hey there, thanks for the comment.
Seems the rumours are true and Ryanair does have plans to open up three new bases in the Canary Islands which will lead to 35 new routes to and from Spain's little paradise. I found the news right on the Ryanair website, if you're interested: http://www.ryanair.com/en/news…
If anyone can afford to open new routes it seems to be Ryanair as their popularity for cheap flight deals doesn't seem to diminish despite all the bad press the airline seems to get.
Speaking of Ryanair, I recently found out about a pretty serious expansion where the company will set up as many as 35 new routes, bringing their total to 112. The numbers, I got from here: http://www.pressdisplay.com/pr…, and was wondering whther or not you knew whether this is in fact, true. Just seems a bit drastic of an expansion given the current economic conditions. But definitely glad to hear about the ski routes, but as a skier, I could be biased. Not sure whether the economic gains will cover this portion of the expansion.
Anyway, appreciate the post!